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On the other hand, yours is sliced much thinner than I could get mine. Did you slice by hand, or with a slicer? And if by hand, please post a picture of your knife so I can get one right away!

Abra, yes I sliced it by hand. My favorite knife is a 12 inch Henckels Pro S chef's knife, nearing 30 years old, which had a pretty cool first userRegarding the lamb proscuito...I don't believe there is a recipe in the book, nor did Jason post one originally. He just commented on the spices used to cure the leg. I looked at the book recipe that I used for proscuito and kinda winged it.

I'll be pulling it out of the cure tomorrow, and have pictures before I put it in also. I'll post both.

Dave

Edited by Bombdog, 06 April 2006 - 03:41 PM.

Dave ValentinRetired Explosive Detection K9 Handler"So, what if we've got it all backwards?" asks my son."Got what backwards?" I ask."What if chicken tastes like rattlesnake?" My son, the Einstein of the family.

Here are some early pics from my 'Folse' andouille run, which is going on now . . .

Today's rigging.

A closer look shows a much coarser cut (1/4" die holes) than the double fine-ground recipe from the book.

I did make some adjustments to the Folse recipe by cutting back the salt from 4T to 3T and including 1t of curing salt for 5.5 pounds of meat. I also worked 1 C of ice water into the mixture when making the primary bind. This recipe calls for hot smoking. So, I'm going to attempt to keep the cabinet at about 175-180 and hot-smoke the links for about 4 hours. In this case, I added ice to the water pan just to extend the amount of time the water would last because of today's variable: I have to leave here in about an hour for about an hour. Who knows what will happen while I'm gone.

This is part of the reason curing is as much an art as it is a science, and note taking is key.

jason

I agree completely. I have a small hard back journal type notebook in the kitchen that I have periodically used for jotting down things culinary for quite some time. The entire back half is now used to document my charcuterie projects. I find it very useful, if for nothing else, than to refer to for dates and weights. As I have moved towards projects of my own (and Jason's) the incredients are important too.

Dave

Dave ValentinRetired Explosive Detection K9 Handler"So, what if we've got it all backwards?" asks my son."Got what backwards?" I ask."What if chicken tastes like rattlesnake?" My son, the Einstein of the family.

Damn, you guys, I'm hooked! I don't watch TV at all, except for presidential elections and bits of the Olympics, but I swear I'm as hooked on this thread as people get on reality shows. I feel like I need to check every hour to see what you all are up to.

Ron, that grind on the andouille sure has more of the look I'm used to. Can't wait for a review of the flavor.

And while I'm here, I'd love any suggestions about this party I have coming up, where I'm having 7-8 eG types over for a Charcuterie Play Day.

I'm looking for a "menu" of things a group that size can all work on, including some minding the smoker (since I have a CharGriller, you do have to mind it), some on sausages, etc. I can do curing in advance, so I thought we could do some bacon, maybe get it going first thing so that hot smoking can go on at the dinner end of the day. The idea is to learn new stuff, eat some killer products, and have stuff to take home. Any ideas what projects would be really fun for an event like this? Andouille? Some fresh sausage? Gyro Dogs? Quick, Dave and Elie, we'd better patent that idea!

The Folse-based andouille turned very well. The stuff is delicious and very near my ideal. It needs a little more tweaking. I think I'd cut the black pepper significantly; maybe even in half. The heat is fine but there is a bitterness which shows up at the finish with that much black pepper. I might add a bit more thyme too.

Here are some pics . . .

The finished sausages. A bit darker in color than the cold-smoked batch.

It's a bit hard to tell, but I think the pic reveals the piece identity within the sausage, which is larger than with batch #1.

Honestly, I wouldn't mind this sausage even more coarse, but I don't know if have all that hand-chopping in me. Maybe next time I'll dice a portion of the meat into small cubes and mix it in by hand right before tubing. I also wouldn't use hickory again even though it is preferred in some quarters. Next time, I'll try either pecan or cherry. In spite of the bold seasoning in this recipe, I think the hickory overpowers somewhat.

I think I've zeroed in on how to make my perfect batch of andouille. I make one huge pot of jambalaya each year for that big party we have. If I can master tasso next, I'll never have to rely on 'the kindness of strangers' to get that pot together. But, next up is some lamb sausage . . . and a belly which is just about ready to be smoked.

Unwrap the leg, and remove the netting. I trimmed away what is some sort of membrane on the fat (it feels gelatinous and slimy) as much as i could. I really didn't worry about trimming the inside much.

Make a mixture of the above stuff and rub 1/2 of the mixture all over hte meat, both sides, being sure to get into the nooks and crannies.

Put in big zip bag and in fridge for 14 days. Rerub with the rest of the spice/salt mix. Put bag in fridge

1 week later, rince the meat well, and let it soak in 2 40 minute cold water baths, changing the water once.

After that you're on your own to make it look as much like a bresaola/coppa/pancetta as you can. I tried rolling it at 1 piece until i figured out i could get 2 pieces which would be rolled tighter.

Hang at 53F/75%RH until about 35-40% weight loss.

The only change i would MAYBE make, is to soak the meat a touch longer in the water baths. It is ever so slightly salty, but definitely not an eating hinderance on this batch.

I picked a bad week to have the flu! This stuff looks amazing. Jason, I hope you'll put that recipe into Recipe Gullet -- and, Ron, can you write up that Folse recipe as well? I agree with Michael: that is some hunger-inducing definition!

I picked a bad week to have the flu! This stuff looks amazing. Jason, I hope you'll put that recipe into Recipe Gullet -- and, Ron, can you write up that Folse recipe as well? I agree with Michael: that is some hunger-inducing definition!

Chris - My guess is that Ron used the Folse recipe from the Gumbo Pages website. It's interesting to note that the andouille recipe here on Folse's own site calls for 2 T of salt instead of 4 and pecan (+sugar cane) instead of hickory. Sort of confirms a couple of Ron's adjustments and observations.

Dave, how did you hit on the half and half double-cure idea? I haven't noticed that in any other recipe. I must say that the end result looks splendid.

Abra, did you mean to ask Jason that question? I'm not at all clear on what you are asking me.

Dave

Dave ValentinRetired Explosive Detection K9 Handler"So, what if we've got it all backwards?" asks my son."Got what backwards?" I ask."What if chicken tastes like rattlesnake?" My son, the Einstein of the family.

Seeing no advice on guanciale, I'm set to do the Babbo cure. I only hesitate because I love Armandino's guanciale, and it has some sort of "wild" taste that I can't identify. But endless Googling reveals no secret spice suggestions, so off I go with Mario.

Seeing no advice on guanciale, I'm set to do the Babbo cure. I only hesitate because I love Armandino's guanciale, and it has some sort of "wild" taste that I can't identify. But endless Googling reveals no secret spice suggestions, so off I go with Mario.

Abra, where did you get fresh pork jowls from? I can never find them here. Only smoked ones are available.

I got the pork jowls from Niman Ranch, as well as fresh back fat, caul fat, and the more pedestrian bellies and butts. I just put my jowls in the cure, and was disappointed to see that they were in weird pieces. I'd envisioned something more uniform in size and shape, but I got one large and one small piece. Obviously not from the same pig. But of course that might be an advantage, since the small one should dry faster, the better to eat it sooner.

Well, I completely forgot to take pictures yesterday when I took the lamb out of the cure and hung it.

On the bright side,

I took the pancetta out this morning

Very happy with the results. I guess I got it rolled tight enough, as it seems fine inside. You're so right Ron, about how difficult that process can be.

Dave

Dave ValentinRetired Explosive Detection K9 Handler"So, what if we've got it all backwards?" asks my son."Got what backwards?" I ask."What if chicken tastes like rattlesnake?" My son, the Einstein of the family.

Mix the garlic, black pepper, cayenne pepper, thyme and salts together. Sprinkle that mixture over diced pork chunks and mix thoroughly. Refrigerate, covered for up to 24 hours. Grind seasoned mixture, once, through a 1/4" die. Then, using the paddle attachment of the stand mixer, slowly add 1 C of ice-cold water to the mixture until it becomes a sticky, homogenous paste (1-2 minutes).

Tube off the mixture into hog casings and twist the casings into links. Let the links dry, uncovered in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours. Once dry, hot-smoke the links at about 180 F, over the wood of your choice. I used hickory on my first try. Next time out, I'll try pecan or cherry. Smoke for 3-4 hours or until the links reach an internal temperature of 150 F. Once fully smoked, dunk the links in a bath of ice water to impede any carry over. Dry links and refrigerate them.

Jason, I actually meant the process you used of putting half the cure on the lamb, refrigerating it for 2 weeks, then the other half of the cure and back into the fridge. That seems novel.

By coincidence, my calendar tells me that my prosciutto might be ready today too. It's been hanging for 2 weeks - how long did yours hang, Dave, to look the way it does today?

I have a wood question. I've been looking for a local source of apple, cherry, or maple wood, so that I can have logs or big chunks instead of having to use chips. I found a guy with a bunch of cherry, but here's the thing. It's not dry, as in kiln-dried. It's been cut, but outside, for a year. I'm not clear on the science of wood drying. On the one hand, it seems like I'm going to soak it anyway, so wet wood is ok. On the other hand, it also seems like in the drying process some volatiles, not water, are probably emitted from the wood, and that their presence in wet wood might not be desirable for cooking. Any ideas? And how about bark, on those fruit and nut woods? Do I need to strip the bark? On alder I've been leaving the bark on, but alder has a very thin bark.

By coincidence, my calendar tells me that my prosciutto might be ready today too. It's been hanging for 2 weeks - how long did yours hang, Dave, to look the way it does today?

Abra, I hope you meant your pancetta, not proscuitto. Mine was cured for 10 days and then into the curing chamber on March 22.

Dave

Dave ValentinRetired Explosive Detection K9 Handler"So, what if we've got it all backwards?" asks my son."Got what backwards?" I ask."What if chicken tastes like rattlesnake?" My son, the Einstein of the family.

I guess this is my lucky day. When I checked my notes for Abra, I discovered that the Tuscan salami should be ready.

Flavor is wonderful, nice and firm to the touch. I'm pretty full of myself today!

Dave

Dave ValentinRetired Explosive Detection K9 Handler"So, what if we've got it all backwards?" asks my son."Got what backwards?" I ask."What if chicken tastes like rattlesnake?" My son, the Einstein of the family.

Abra, I always take all the bark I can off wood I'm using to cook with as the bark can cause acrid smoke. I think you're fine using wood that's been seasoned a year, even if it's not bone dry. I used to live next to an orchard and got trimmings all the time and they were fine after even a summer.

I have a wood question. I've been looking for a local source of apple, cherry, or maple wood, so that I can have logs or big chunks instead of having to use chips. I found a guy with a bunch of cherry, but here's the thing. It's not dry, as in kiln-dried. It's been cut, but outside, for a year. I'm not clear on the science of wood drying. On the one hand, it seems like I'm going to soak it anyway, so wet wood is ok. On the other hand, it also seems like in the drying process some volatiles, not water, are probably emitted from the wood, and that their presence in wet wood might not be desirable for cooking. Any ideas? And how about bark, on those fruit and nut woods? Do I need to strip the bark? On alder I've been leaving the bark on, but alder has a very thin bark.

I've been getting my smoke wood from barbecuewood.com. They are way cheaper than local (Seattle) sources and the quality is good.

Wood should be dried covered for at least a year, so you're probably ok.

I never soak smoke wood. I think it just delays the inevitable as the water needs to evaporate in order to smoke.

I don't like wrestling small chunks of wood and losing, so I take the bark off if it looks like I can get it off easily.

I was making a garlic sage brine for 8 1/2 lbs of what was marked "pork picnic shoulder" at a local Korean supermarket (Hmart) when I realized there was another application for something I had in my freezer. I keep a 72 oz plastic mayo jar filled with water (becomes ice, duh to the duh power) to keep the freezer cold and take up empty airspace. The original idea was to chill my hands when my wife said they were too hot in the summertime.
Anyway, I found that the ice in the jar cools off the brine faster after heating it up. Being the analytically retentive person that I am, I first wrapped it with 2 sheets of plastic wrap first, to keep the jar clean to use another day.

That Tuscan salami is simply glorious. How many of those have you done? What are the potential pitfalls that a first-timer should keep in mind?

Thanks Ron.

Hard as it may be to believe, that salami was my first curing project. I followed the recipe in the book to the letter and never had one bit of a problem. I checked them at the recommended time and decided another week was a good idea. At that point, they were just a bit softer than I thought they should be, although the taste was great.

I'm guessing <knock on wood> that it was just beginners luck. Michael speaks to so many things that can go wrong that I was pretty much resigned to having some sort of problem.

I can't see you having any problems with the project Ron. Other than the curing time, they really are not any different from so many of the other projects you've already done.

Dave

Dave ValentinRetired Explosive Detection K9 Handler"So, what if we've got it all backwards?" asks my son."Got what backwards?" I ask."What if chicken tastes like rattlesnake?" My son, the Einstein of the family.